The Benefits and Suitability of CNC Horizontals

Summary: Milling machines are mainly categorized based on their orientation as being horizontal and vertical. Horizontal machines are known to be very sturdy, and
can handle complex milling operations with ease.

Milling machine basics:

A milling machine is a tool that’s widely used in the metalworking industry. This
machine performs the vital task of shaping a block of metal by cutting or
drilling away unwanted parts to create a finished part or component. Other
industries such as carpentry and plastic machining also make use of milling
machines that are made especially for use with materials such as wood, stone or
plastics.

Classification of milling machines:

In this article we shall dwell upon the uses of a milling machine in the context
of the metalworking industry. Such machines are mainly categorized based on
their orientation as being horizontal and vertical. Each of these two mill
types has a unique advantage based on specific milling requirements. CNC horizontals have a spindle that is
positioned horizontally in relation to the work-piece. These machines are known
to be very sturdy, and can handle complex milling operations with ease. In most
cases, users that do not need exceedingly high levels of accuracy might
choose to opt for horizontal milling machine.

Suitability of a horizontal machine:

Each CNC horizontal machine comes with a variety of tools that are held in an
automatic tool changer that can be utilized for achieving varied results. CNC
horizontal machines have tool changers that can hold as few as forty tools to
as many as 250 on the larger models.
This feature of CNC horizontals greatly expands the type of work that
can be done by the machine because the operator does not need to be manually
change tools for each operation.

In the case of a horizontal CNC milling machine, one of the simplest ways to cut a
metal part is by attaching it to a square block of steel called a
“tombstone”. When the CNC horizontal
machine is done cutting the parts on one face of the “tombstone”, the machine
rotates to the next face to continue the operation. This method greatly increases the number of
parts that can be cut per hour. Due to
this characteristic of CNC horizontals they have become quite popular amongst companies that need to produce large volumes
of parts.

Save money bypurchasing a used machine:

Today, purchasing used CNC horizontals has
become a popular trend because it enables businesses to save money even as they
purchase machines that are in top shape. However, it is important to purchase such a machine from a reputable firm that has a proven track record in selling used CNC milling machines at an international level like Superior Machinery.